Day 14: "Seattle"

Hey, wait a minute, the belly dancers are behind us and that pink float is in front of us... how did we end up here?

States: Washington
Miles: 162.4
Weather: A little chilly at times, but sunny all day! What are the odds of that in Seattle?

$$$
Gas: 43.21
Camping Fee: 15
Space Needle: 50.40

Total: 108.61

Signatures: +0 :(
58/100

So as you already know, we spent last night at a Motel 6. Let me just say, it was an EXCELLENT night of sleep. We set an alarm for eight a.m., but did not wake up to it. Instead, we awoke to the sounds of the couple in the room next to us screaming at each other about something at approximately ten a.m. What fun, we overslept again, and though we needed it, we were still slightly disappointed.
In addition to sleep, the motel also provided such other necessities as showers and laundry. We all showered, but left without doing laundry because the machines were all in use, and would remain that way for some time...bummer.
Anyways, we made our way back into the city of Seattle, where we parked our car and headed towards the monorail station. Our plan was to take the monorail from downtown Seattle to the Space Needle, but on the way to the station, we were slightly distracted by the Gay Pride Parade going on. We decided to follow the parade instead, and thought it was awesome, from the flags and banners, to the belly dancing lesbians, to the free samples of Starbucks instant coffee!
Eventually, we reached the Needle, and took the outdoor elevator up to the top, which I might add is open air. It was awesome, and gave us some great views of the city and Mount Rainier. After reading about the history of the Needle, we went back down and took the monorail from there towards downtown again. After some more walking about the city and the shoreline (where we saw a group of oldtimers playing classic rock on one of the piers), we headed back to the car.
From there, we went pretty much directly to Mount Rainier, as we were all still really tired, and it was getting to be late afternoon. It took more than an hour to get there, and upon arriving, we proceeded (in our tired delirium) to throw an empty milk jug at each other and use the tent poles as swords (until one of them broke...whoops). After that, we actually got down to the business of setting up camp and cooking dinner (hot dogs and soup... what fun!) For the second time in a row, the hot dogs, when cooked over the fire, developed this black oily residue, which we discovered was from the sap in the evergreen wood (adding to the previously excellent flavor... sort of). Anyways, we ate them, cleaned up, and then read in the tent until sleep overcame us all. Goodnight.

Matt

Day 13: "Vehicle Repair"

"Alright start the car"..."Wait. Let's say a prayer."

States: Oregon - Washington
Miles: 497.1
Weather: Chilly then Warm



$$$
Gas: 90.42
Car Parts: 27.49
Tacos & Beans: 8.50
Motel: 73.73

Total: 201.34

Signature:+3
58/100

Dreaming… (Phil’s phone rings)… awaken. “Aw, you guys let’s get up!” Fall back asleep. (Phil’s phone rings) Mmmmm! Holy $#*! It’s cold! Fall asleep. (Phil’s pho…. You get the gist. We wake up at the Crater Lake campground in the middle of Oregon. It’s a lot colder than we anticipated and we’re all too cozy to move for the first 5 rings of Phil’s phone. Disgruntedly we all get up to the battalion of mosquitoes waiting outside our tent for breakfast. We pack in 25 minutes and are out. It was interesting that it only took 25 minutes, because of the landfill Phil had created in the 4Runner last night trying to futz with the Fuel Pump and seal and such. We did it though.
We knew that gas was leaking and we lost an average of 4 miles to the gallon because of the problem. Our plan: Get to Portland and we’ll fix it there. Portland was our destination for the night, so if we are going to sleep there anyways than why not work on the car the whole time anyways. So we hurry to the top of Manzama mountain to see the lake. As expected beautiful, though it was hard to take in, because there was literally a black cloud following us. We could smell the gas after we parked up there. It was leaking fast and you could the trail of drops that had followed us. We exit the park.
We figured on the way out that we’d stop at Eugene 1st so as to get the parts Phil thought necessary to fix our problem. He led us through a “short-cut” that supposedly saved us 45 minutes at least. It may have but it took a toll on the outer of the truck for it was a gravel road. I’m not necessarily the softest driver. It was like louge through branches, fallen trees, and potholes. Some potholes couldn’t be avoided (that was the 1st time I ever got air in a car). We stopped at our first gas station on when we got out and discovered a chrome piece missing from the muffler. Oops. It doesn’t harm us though. O and in Oregon they do full service at the gas stations. We didn’t have to get out! Sweet.
Eugene: Another somewhat big city in Oregon but not the coziest. There were quite a profound amount of bums and some were those you’d think were just an old-timer walking down the street taking in the rays. Nope. Of course we were asked a favor to gnaw at the branches of the homeless rather than cut at the roots (some cash for coffee rather than a solution to their depravity). There was a festival, like everywhere we’ve been this summer, and we soon found an auto shop. Phil bought a gas filter, oil plate, and a goop that’s called QuickSteel (it seals something I think?). We spent an hour in the parking lot and were on our way to Portland. Phil found that the problem was not a clogged filter. One block out of the way. But he did find there was a hole in a line that went to the Fuel Pump system The plan was to use the QuickSteel in Portland. So we went to Portland.
Portland: the biggest city in Oregon. Not rated at the top of my favorites. It was hard to find a good parking spot to fix the car but we had to fill up again. We did and some dude named John filled it up for us. A talkative fellow whom mentioned nude beached to us and said he’d been to Chicago. It was hard to understand him. Through the mumbling and Ebonics I noticed the words “Red-Caps” and “The Cling”. I assume he was talking about murder and Cook county jail. Nonetheless we found a spot in a thick alley parallel parked.
It was actually a good time hanging in that alley. We got comments about a “rich” smell; we ate $1 tacos on the corner, saw hippies playing an odd genre of music that included yelling and hitting wood, and heard a verbal brawl from down the street. I played the ukulele for kicks with my Grand Canyon hat out and actually earned 91 cents! DUDE… a hobo even complimented me. Then we explored the shoreline of the river where there, of course, was another fair flea-market thing going on. Phil fixed the leak, after a few prayers, and we were back on the road without the smell of gas staining the air.
Washington. The speed limit of course is 15 higher than Oregon’s snail 55 which made us happy. Plenty of green and mountains. O I forgot to say… we ditched the stay at Portland idea and decided to get to Seattle instead to perhaps find a Motel or something to stay in, because we’ve camped so long we think we deserve a treat. So Seattle, mmm, very enjoyable and cleanly cut. Here’s the first human observations we made while parked searching for a Motel through the technology world. A group of different females were gathering together. Hmm? In a parking lot and they all seemd very lively. Ooo. One grabs the other and they hug. Hmm. They kiss. Oh! And proceed with the snogging. Woah! Yes, I believe there is some homosexual holiday going on in Seattle during this particular time, because driving around we saw more same-sex hand holds than the regular boy girl mix. I think the West is going gay. I mean we just dodged the gay parades in Frisco and now this! O well, just a bit of culture. Hehe.
Well, anyways, we didn’t exactly find a Motel in Seattle, but we did find one in Seatac. A nice smoke/pee smelling Motel on the outskirts of Seattle. A lovely Lorena set us up with a room understanding our money dilemma and told me I was 17 for the night and she also added a few other “discounts”. Lovely lady like I said. We got our room and situated. Phil did his own rituals while Matt and I called ad after ad from the TV just to talk to people. It’s interesting how off topic you can get RosettaStone, Sleep Number, and such people’s away from their original job, which is to send you stuff (they don’t actually know the prices off the top of their heads). We stop and now go to sleep. That’s the day. Wow!... the was a long day… TaTa.

MJ

Day 12: "Crater Lake"

Hey why's that lady wearing mosquito netting? (Later) Why aren't we wearing mosquito netting!

States: California - Oregon
Miles: 323.7
Weather: Pretty, Slightly Humid


$$$
Gas: 93.78
Campsite: 22.89
Showers: 2
Phone Calls: 6
Food: 13.23
Gum & Ice: 3.68

Total: 141.58

Signatures: +9
55/100

We woke up on time today, but we didn’t leave on time, haha. We left the State Park and headed back to the Golden Gate Bridge to snap some more pictures. We got some pictures, but it was really foggy out. We headed out on the 101 North, and then Matt missed the exit, whoops. After a few hour highway ride we arrived at Crater Lake National Park Visitor Center. I realized why our mileage had been so bad, we had a gas leak! We drove to our campsite and I started to work on finding the problem while Matt & MJ showered. I got out my tools and started looking around, and taking some things off. I asked one of them to start the car and saw gas leaking from the top of the tank. To me it looked like it was coming from the Fuel Pump seal. I was on and off the Pay phone (no cell service) with my mom and our motor club. I found out that there are no shops open on Saturday or Sunday to help me diagnose the problem. I also found that it was illegal to work on the car in a national park. Great. Matt & MJ made dinner (potatoes & hot dogs) while I tried to figure things out. After we ate we were pretty tired so we left everything as-is and left it for the morning to clean-up. Off we go to bed! Peace.

Phil

Day 11: "San Francisco"

"Dude it says go 35! You're going 60!" ... "I know but I'm good at it."

States: California
Miles: 456.4
Weather: Cloudy

$$$
Gas: 48.75
Toll: 4
Bucket O' Donuts: 9.50

Total: 62.25

Signatures: +6
46/100

Hello again! Today started off pretty ordinarily. We awoke on our final morning in Yosemite to beautiful weather, and a four hour drive to Big Sur, California. After a good bit of mountain driving, we reached the coast, and backtracked south down the Pacific Coast Highway to the quaint little town of Big Sur.
Big Sur is known for its unrivaled ocean views from the coastal cliffs. The views really were excellent! Seeing the waves crash against the rocky shore was awesome (hopefully, we’ll be able to post pictures). I felt like I was in some sort of ultra-romantic daydream, just getting lost in the sound of…
Well anyways, we asked one of the cashiers in this local store if there were any showers nearby. She wasn’t much help. All she could tell us was that the townspeople know a place (fittingly called “Grimes”) where some of the locals like to bathe in the ocean, but she had no idea how to get there.
So, on to San Francisco we went! We were all pretty excited to get to “Frisco,” as it’s called out here, as we had been going through big city withdrawal ever since our departure from L.A. We got there in mid-afternoon (after being stuck in traffic for close to an hour) and proceeded to cross the Bay Bridge, which we discovered was not the same thing as the Golden Gate Bridge…who knew? The Bridge offered some great views of the bay and of the local shipping industry, but unfortunately, we had to pay $4 to get back across it to return to San Francisco from Oakland, where the bridge left us off.
After receiving directions from my coworker, Max, we were able to navigate around the city decently well and find our way to the Fisherman’s Wharf area (aka Pier 39). We parked the car and walked in and out of many of the various shops in the area, picking up a few small things as we went (including a bucket of 36 mini doughnuts, which we simply could not resist).
After a bit of looking out at the Bay and Alcatraz(which we did not tour, but looked very cool nonetheless), we made our way through the city in an attempt to find Lombard Avenue (aka “The Crookedest Street in the World”). We walked through Chinatown and Little Italy, both of which smelled AMAZING due to the abundance of restaurants, and eventually found Lombard just as it was getting dark. The views of the city were pretty amazing from the tops of some of the hills, and a bunch of the streets were lined with flower gardens, adding to the beauty of the city. Unfortunately, it was getting late, so back to the car we went!
We left the city via the Golden Gate Bridge, which was pretty awesome! Our plan was to camp on this beach just outside of the city, but upon our arrival, we found out that the beach was closed. In our attempt to find somewhere else to spend the night, we came across this family that was stuck in a ditch, and decided to get out and try to help them. We soon discovered that they were the Chow family and they live in San Francisco. By the time we had offered to help them, they had already called a tow truck and it was on its way, but that didn’t stop us from attempting to help anyways. We stayed and chatted with them for a bit, and they tried to convince us to stay for the Gay Pride Parade on this coming Sunday, but unfortunately, we couldn’t. The tow truck arrived soon after and pulled them out, but before we said goodbye, they directed us to a nearby campsite where we could spend the night. We made our way up into the coastal hills towards our campsite, through clouds that were so think they flowed more like pudding than anything else. We set up camp on the side of this parking lot (which contained a hippie bus and a bunch of RVs), and then slept the night without trouble.

Matt

Day 10: "Yosemite"

"Hey guys, trails closed, rock-slide" ... "Let's go!"

States: California
Miles: 135
Weather: Same ole' same ole'





$$$
Ice: 3.36

Total: 3.36 (WOO HOO!)

Signatures: +2
40/100

So we wake up in Yosemite (after the alarm went off four or five times). This place is touristy, very, very touristy. Coming through the mountains, it seemed deserted, but when we got to the Hodgdon Meadows campground, the place was packed. PACKED with cars and roaming night owls. The day was different in the sense that only everyone had scattered… what’s scary is that this did not make it seem and emptier.
It was a good day though. We got up and personal with Bridalveil Fall, and hiked back down through the stream instead of the path. We saw El Capitan, a massive landform you feel the need to salute to when seen. We attempted to find mirror lake, which was actually right in front of us for a little while (it was just so small) to see Half Dome. Yes, we saw Half Dome towering above us through the trees… It’s huge.
That’s all we really saw. We know it’s like nothing compared to what the rest of Yosemite has to offer, but we got a taste. A family vacation would be nice to come back here again. To be honest, I think we’re a little jaded. Enthusiasm for the sights has simmered, and we are trying to boost back our ardent spirits. What I think is best is to interact with other people. Our most fun and memorable moments of the trip are with people.
After our mini excursion through Yosemite Valley, we went back to camp. We slept, we read, we slept, we cooked ribeyes and potatoes (we’re getting skilled at cooking). We ate, we talked (deeply), we went to sleep. It was a short day in events, thus the short blog. People, we’re making it through.

MJ

Day 9: "Sequoia"

"It'll take about an hour and a half".... "Excuse ME!?"

States: California
Miles: 495.7
Weather: Hot


$$$
Gas: 81.78
Gas Cap: 8.71
Ice: 3.36

Total: 93.85

Signatures: +5
38/100

Again, we awoke late today, no surprise there. We left Maurissa’s sister’s apartment and went to her other sister’s house for breakfast. It was very tasty. We left around 9 & headed towards Hollywood to get a picture of the sign. We got lost for a bit but found our way. L.A. traffic is really fun to drive in. We snapped some pics of the sign and were en route to Sequoia National Forest, you know, the trees that are HUGE!

Though we didn’t drive through any trees, we drove through the forest on a steep curvy road. We then navigated our way to Yosemite. I made the reservations a long time ago, so naturally, I didn’t remember the name of the campground that we were staying at. Now came the ordeal of finding where we were staying. After a few calls, we found our campsite (they spelled my last name wrong, so they couldn’t find it).We made our way to one of the many entrances, and the ranger greeted us and told us where to go: “Just make a left here, and follow the sign for 120 West. It should take you an hour and a half.” Come again?

It was already around ten, and we still had a while to go. Dang. We lost service a while back, so we just shut off our phones. Now, this is a little out of timeline, but I fell asleep for a bit and Mj was a bit delirious. He was lightheaded and acting like he was on drugs. I made some PB & J in the car, and they were quite large. Once we got to our site, we pretty much went straight to bed.

This next section is my thing: car stuff. So here’s a little info. We are driving my car: a 1995 Toyota 4Runner with a V6. It had 109k miles on it before I accidentally blew a hole in the engine block, rendering it useless, and me carless. So I put in a recently rebuilt engine with about 30k on it. I finished it April 26^th, and now two months later, I’ve put over 9000 miles on it and counting. The truck has been extremely reliable. We’re not burning or leaking any oil. Our only problem was a hole in the headers (it was there when I bought them), but easily fixed by pennies and dimes. The pennies usually burn up from the heat of the exhaust after a few months. A word of advice to those who plan on travelling: always check your oil and tire pressure at every stop. As you go up in elevation, your tire pressure increases and they may become overinflated. It’s vice-versa on the way down. That’s all I have to say really, so goodbye.

Phil

Day 8: "Los Angeles"

The City of Angels is probably anything but, but was awesome nonetheless!

States: Nevada - California
Miles: 230.8
Weather: Beautifully sunny all day!

$$$
Gas: 49.11
Wahoo's: 18.00

Total: 67.11

Signatures: +2
33/100


So today started out like all the rest...late! We stayed up late last night fixing up the blog and hanging out in the how tub, so getting up early was most definitely a chore. After saying goodbye to Phil's aunt Lisa, we made our way out of Vegas and into the Nevada desert, which is very pretty, I might add.
Well, I found out today that what they say about the Los Angeles highway system is true: it really is insane! To make our way into the city, we had to weave and speed through tons of traffic and many different road changes. Eventually, we were able to get to Torrence, a suburb of L.A. just south of the city limit. In Torrence is where a friend of ours, Maurissa, is spending a few weeks with her family. Naturally, we elected to stay with her at her sister's apartment and have her be our own personal tour guide, since she knows the city much better than we do.
The first thing we did when we got here was eat (we were really hungry, and pizza never tasted so good). Next, we made our way to the Hermosa beach for a quick swim. The water was pretty warm, as far as the ocean goes, anyways, and the sunny weather made for an awesome time. We then went to Venice Beach, where we strolled up and down the boardwalk along the beach looking at the shops and street vendors, and picking up a few little things here and there.
After that, we headed to Rodeo Drive, where we parked the car and walked around the streets oooing and ahhing at the unbelievably fancy shops and world-reknowned designer labels. It was quite a sight to see for sure. One other thing that was probably more amazing than the shops themselves was the massive amount of luxury cars that were in the area. It was ridiculous! Literally, while at a stop light, the only cars in view around us (some six or seven) were made by Lexus, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz. During our tour of downtown, I saw cars made by Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, and Rolls-Royce among others, and, needless to say, I was in awe. Wow!
Later, we drove through Beverly Hills, and found our way to the gates of the Playboy Mansion. The security was ridiculous, and we couldn't see the house at all, but just seeing the gate was enough to get our celebrity fix for the day. Before we returned home for the night, we ate dinner at Wahoo's Fish Tacos in Manhattan Beach, and the food was excellent. None of us had fish, but I would personally recommend the burritos...
Upon returning to the apartmant, we took a dip in the pool in the complex, relaxed in the hot tub, and now are heading to bed after yet another packed day. Goodnight everyone!

Matt

P.S. After some talking today, we decided that Mj's somewhat harsh criticism of Las Vegas yesterday was a result of a bit of culture shock, as we were in the wilderness for days on end, and Vegas was the first big city we really stayed in. After being in L.A. today, it is easier for us to look at Vegas in a slightly better light.

P.P.S. Another thing I forgot to mention is that, upon entering California, our car was subjected to a search by the California Department of Agriculture. They asked us if we were carrying any fruit or vegetables in the car, and when we responded positively, the officer proceeded to closely examine our lone apple for what seemed to be at least twenty seconds before letting us go. How odd is that!

Matt (again)